Ukraine Chief Admits Arms-Transfer Error

Published: May 8, 1992

WASHINGTON, May 7—
President Leonid M. Kravchuk of Ukraine acknowledged today that he did not know Wednesday that all tactical nuclear weapons had been transferred from his country to Russia, where they are to be dismantled.

Speaking to reporters at a news conference, he said that he had received a cable overnight from the Ukranian Minister of Defense telling him that all of the short-range weapons had been taken from Ukranian territory.

An announcement to that effect was made Wednesday in Moscow by officials of the Commonwealth of Independent States, who had apparently not informed the Ukrainian President. Mr. Kravchuk insisted in meetings with reporters Wednesday that the weapons were still being transported in a process that would be completed by July 1. Today he reversed that.

"We have no more tactical nuclear weapons on our territory," he said. "They have all been transferred to Russia. Now we have only weapons on Black Sea ships."

Mr. Kravchuk, speaking through an intepreter, also said that he could see "some problems" ahead in the destruction of weapons and missile systems in Russia because of the limited capacity there to complete the task in reasonable time.

The Ukrainian President repeated to reporters this morning his belief that his country would be in a position to ratify the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, which governs long-range nuclear weapons, as soon as the details of the necessary protocols had been worked out with Washington.

The treaty was signed in July by the United States and the Soviet Union. Four former republics now house the Soviet nuclear arsenal -- Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan -- and the Bush Administration wants agreements with all four.